Scooter Safety Gear: What to Wear and What to Skip

Scooter riders sit somewhere awkward between cyclists and motorcyclists. The speeds are closer to a bicycle, the failure mode is closer to a motorcycle, because a small wheel that finds a pothole does not let go slowly. Gear is worth thinking about in that order: what is likely to happen, then what protects against it.

The helmet is not optional and the type matters

Head injury is the injury that changes lives, and it is the one a helmet demonstrably prevents. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has decades of data on helmet effectiveness for powered two-wheelers, and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety tracks the same across states with and without universal helmet laws. The pattern is not subtle.

For a stand-up scooter under about 20 mph, a certified bicycle helmet is a reasonable choice, and one that extends further down the back of the head is better than one that does not. Above that, or on any seated scooter or moped sharing a road with traffic, a motorcycle helmet meeting the DOT standard is the right tool. The difference in impact energy between 15 mph and 30 mph is a factor of four, and a bicycle helmet is not designed for the upper end of that.

Replace any helmet that has taken an impact, even if it looks fine. The foam crushes once.

Gloves, because hands go down first

Every fall ends with your palms. Gloves with a reinforced palm turn a month of awkward keyboard use into an inconvenience. They also stop the vibration numbness that sets in on a long ride with solid tyres, and they make cold-weather riding possible at all.

Eye protection

At 20 mph a grain of grit in the eye is not a small event, and on a scooter your eyes are at the height of the average pickup truck's exhaust. Clear glasses at night, tinted in the day. Anything is better than nothing.

What goes on your feet

Closed shoes with a flat sole and a real grip. Sandals and scooters are a combination that ends at a urgent care clinic, because the deck is where your foot goes and the ground is four inches below it. Laces long enough to reach the wheel are worth tucking in.

Visibility beats armour

The most common serious scooter crash involving another vehicle is a driver who did not see the rider. That makes visibility the highest-value item on this list after the helmet.

Practical measures, in rough order of effect: a bright front light on in daylight as well as at night, a rear light, reflective material on your moving parts rather than your static ones, because ankles and wrists in motion read as human far faster than a reflective panel on a bag, and light-coloured clothing above the waist. The CPSC's micromobility guidance puts lights, reflectors and an audible signal at the top of its before-you-ride list for the same reason.

Worth having if you ride a lot

• Knee protection. Light slip-on pads. Knees hit second, after hands.
• A jacket with abrasion resistance. Above 20 mph, skin loses to asphalt quickly. A textile motorcycle jacket is overkill on a commute and exactly right on a moped.
• Ear protection on longer moped rides. Wind noise at 35 mph is loud enough to matter over time, which is why occupational noise limits exist at similar levels.

What to skip

Full motorcycle armour on a 15 mph commute is not a good trade, because gear you will not wear protects nothing. Reflective vests over a backpack are largely wasted, since the backpack covers the reflective panel. Novelty helmets that meet no standard are worse than useless, because they feel like protection.

If you are renting

Ask whether a helmet is included before you arrive, and check the fit and the date rather than the price. A helmet that has been in a rental fleet for five seasons has had a life. Many riders who rent regularly bring their own for exactly this reason.

Ready to ride? Find a shop or rental counter near you, and check the rules for your class of machine before the first trip.